Frost



Jan. 3l, 1956 Q FROST OPEN-BACK SHOE CONSTRUCTION Filed July l, A1954 United States Patent" 2,732,635 y UPEN-BACK SHOE `,(*ZONSTRIJACTION Application July 1, 1954, Serial No. 440,588 3 Claims. (Cl. Sti-24.5)

This invention relates to ladies shoes and relates more particularly to a novel heel construction for shoes with open backs and which provides a superior heel structure which creates the appearance of being of greater height than usual and also has the appearance of increased slimness.

In conventional ladies shoes with a closed back section the insole is cut to proper size and is secured in place, usually by adhesive. In the open back variety, however, it is necessary to secure a leather binding around the edges of the heel section of the insole as well as around the toe section because these edges are exposed to view.

The problem of adhesively securing this binding to the curved edges is a dillicult one and requires a high degree of skill to produce a satisfactory piece of work. This is due primarily to the fact that the opposed longitudinal edges of the binding strip which are secured to the upper and lower surfaces of the heel have excess material because of the convex edge which is the principal part to be covered. The entire operation must be done by hand and the results are seldom uniform.

The principal object of the present invention is to so form the heel section as to conceal the exposed edges of the insole and thus eliminate the hand binding operation while at the same time giving the heel a more finished appearance and neater lines.

In accordance with the present invention the heel seat is of concave construction which, in itself, is not novel, but the degree of concavity is so proportioned that the laminated heel section of the sole including the reinforcing metal shank and the interliner or filler strips, if any, are recessed below the rim of the heel seat and provide a completely recessed seat for the heel section. The heel is preferably covered with the material of which the upper and the straps are made and this covering extends over the rim of the heel seat. The laminated heel structure including the inner sole of reduced proportions and the sock lining are thus disposed on a plane not substantially higher than the covered rim. The resulting heel section is attractive in appearance and can be formed with less hand labor than can the usual open back shoe.

Another object of the invention is to provide a heel structure of normal height but having the illusion of greater height than usual and the heel also creates the appearance of greater sliinness without reducing the structural strength of the heel.

The probable reason for this illusion of greater height resides in the fact that the heel of the present invention presents a smooth, unbroken appearance from the heel lift at the bottom to the platform on top upon which the heel of the wearer rests. In the conventional heel, on the contrary, the smooth, unbroken appearance is marred by the exposed, covered edges of the insole, which in the heel of the present invention are nowhere in evidence.

Thus the heel of the present invention, in addition to having the appearance of great height and slimness, also appears to be exceedingly light in weight, possesses very 2,732,635 Patented Jan. 31, 1956 clean lines and has greater exibility than do conventional heels. It is also considerably less expensive to make.

In the drawing:

Fig. 1 is a perspective view of an open back shoe embodying the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a section taken on line 2 2 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged section of a portion of the structure shown in Fig. 2 and showing a slight modification.

Fig. 4 is a section taken on line 4 4 of Fig. 2.

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the heel block.

Fig. 6 is a section taken on line 6 6 of Fig. 5.

The open back shoe of the present invention includes an outer sole 10, a front upper section 11 and a heel 12. The heel block is shown in Figs. 5 and 6 and may be formed from wood, plastic or other suitable material.

The heel block is concaved to form a heel seat 13 which is common practice in the art. In the present instance, however, more of the wood is removed than is usual and for a reason which will become apparent. There is thus formed a curved rim 14 which is generally Hat and which extends around the sides and rear edge of the heel seat.

The rear and side faces of the heel block are first covored with leather, fabric or other decorative material 15 and this covering extends over rim 14 and inwardly a sucient distance so that its margins 16 are covered by the sock lining.

The outer sole 10 is of substantially uniform thickness until it reaches point 17 and it is then skived at its rear section to form a heel breast 18 of reduced thickness. In certain instances the upper section of the outer sole which remains after the heel breast is formed may continue rearwardly into the heel seat but in the drawing this section is shown as having been removed. The upper of the shoe also includes rear straps 19.

The heel section is built up and includes a plurality of layers and the uppermost surface is at and lies at substantially the plane of the covered rim of the heel seat. The lower surface of the heel section is convexly curved and lits snugly into the concavity forming the seat.

There is shown at 20 a metal plate forming a shank reinforcement which extends into the heel seat section and below the metal plate is a layer Z1 of leather which terminates adjacent the heel breast at point 17.

Above the metal plate is the inner sole 22. Inasmuch as the metal plate usually has a lesser width than the heel seat, ller strips of leather Z3 may be positioned on each side of the plate as shown in Fig. 2. On top of the inner sole a sock lining 24 is secured and the coinbined thickness of all of the superimposed elements which are received in the concave heel seat is such that the upper face of the sock lining is on substantially the same plane as the covered rim 14. In Fig. 2 the sock lining is shown as terminating inside of the rim whereas in Fig. 3 it covers the rim.

What I claim is:

l. In a ladies shoe, a heel having a concavity in its upper surface forming a heel seat with a raised rim extending around the sides and back of the seat, a sole structure including a heel section comprising a plurality of layers including a lower portion, an insole and a sock lining, said lower portion being convexly curved to fit into and being secured within the said concavity, the upper surface of the heel rim being at a level at least as high as the upper surface of the insole, said sock lining covering the entire heel portion of the insole, being secured thereto, and coacting With the heel rim to present a smooth, unbroken substantially at surface clear to the edge of the heel.

2. The combination recited in claim 1, in which the upper face of the insole extends substantially ush with ing is encompassed at its front and sides by said heel rim and extends substantially ush therewith.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Heilhecker- July 22, 1924 Gustin Dec. 17, 1935 Beestrum Sept. 11, 1945 Kamborian Jan. 14, 1947 FOREIGN PATENTS Great Britain July 11, 1927 Great Britain Feb. 2, 1933 

